This is an up-to-date fork of GitHub Desktop with additional features and improvements.
Important
This is a community-maintained project. It is not an official GitHub product.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
See the full list of features here.
See demo video
demo.mp4
Click to expand
winget install DesktopPlus.DesktopPlusTo update, run winget upgrade DesktopPlus.DesktopPlus or winget upgrade --all to update all your winget packages. Make sure to update regularly to get the latest features and fixes.
Download and execute the installer from the releases page.
| 64-bit x86 | 64-bit ARM | |
|---|---|---|
| .EXE Installer | -win-x64.exe |
-win-arm64.exe |
| .MSI Installer |
-win-x64.msi |
-win-arm64.msi |
Please note that the app doesn't auto-update like the official GitHub Desktop, so you will need to manually download and install it every time you want to update.
For this reason, I recommend using Winget instead of the manual download.
Click to expand
brew install desktop-plus/tap/desktop-plusMake sure to run brew update + brew upgrade regularly to get the latest updates for Desktop Plus.
Download and extract the ZIP file from the releases page. Click the app file to run it.
If you encounter the error "Apple could not verify this app is free of malware", go to "System Settings" > "Privacy & Security", scroll down to "Security" and click "Open Anyway" on "Desktop Plus".
| 64-bit x86 | 64-bit ARM (Apple Silicon) |
|---|---|
-macOS-x64.zip |
-macOS-arm64.zip |
Please note that the app doesn't auto-update like the official GitHub Desktop, so you will need to manually download it every time you want to update.
For this reason, I recommend using Homebrew instead of the manual download.
Click to expand
Create the repository file:
sudo curl https://gpg.desktop-plus.org/public.key | sudo gpg --dearmor -o /usr/share/keyrings/desktop-plus.gpg
echo "deb [arch=amd64,arm64 signed-by=/usr/share/keyrings/desktop-plus.gpg] https://apt.desktop-plus.org/ stable main" | sudo tee /etc/apt/sources.list.d/desktop-plus.listUpdate the package list and install:
sudo apt update
sudo apt install desktop-plusClick to expand
Create the repository file:
sudo rpm --import https://gpg.desktop-plus.org/public.key
echo -e "[desktop-plus]\nname=Desktop Plus\nbaseurl=https://rpm.desktop-plus.org/\nenabled=1\ngpgcheck=1\nrepo_gpgcheck=1\ngpgkey=https://gpg.desktop-plus.org/public.key" | sudo tee /etc/yum.repos.d/desktop-plus.repoUpdate the package list and install:
sudo dnf check-update --refresh
sudo dnf install desktop-plusClick to expand
Create the repository file:
sudo rpm --import https://gpg.desktop-plus.org/public.key
echo -e "[desktop-plus]\nname=Desktop Plus\nbaseurl=https://rpm.desktop-plus.org/\nenabled=1\ngpgcheck=1\nrepo_gpgcheck=1\ngpgkey=https://gpg.desktop-plus.org/public.key" | sudo tee /etc/zypp/repos.d/desktop-plus.repoUpdate the package list and install:
sudo zypper refresh
sudo zypper install desktop-plusClick to expand
Simply install desktop-plus-bin from the AUR using your preferred AUR helper.
yay -S desktop-plus-binYou can also build from source by installing desktop-plus or desktop-plus-git from the AUR.
gnome-keyringis required and the daemon must be launched either at login or when the X server / Wayland compositor is started. Normally this is handled by a display manager, but in other cases following the instructions found on the Arch Wiki will fix the issue of not being able to save login credentials.
Click to expand
Simply install Desktop Plus from Flathub:
flatpak install flathub org.desktop_plus.desktop-plusNOTE: Git hooks will run inside the Flatpak sandbox and cannot access programs installed on your system (such as version managers, linters, or other tools your hooks rely on). If your hooks depend on such programs, install a native package instead.
Click to expand
IMPORTANT: I strongly recommend using your distribution's native package (APT, RPM, and AUR packages above) or Flatpak instead of the AppImage, as it requires some manual setup for the sign-in feature to work.
If you need to use the AppImage, follow these steps:
- Manually create a
desktop-plus.desktopentry. - Link the MIME type:
xdg-mime default desktop-plus.desktop x-scheme-handler/x-github-desktop-auth
Using "AM"/"AppMan"
# If using "AM":
am install github-desktop-plus
# If using "AppMan":
appman install github-desktop-plusDownload the AppImage from the releases page:
| 64-bit x86 | 64-bit ARM |
|---|---|
-linux-x86_64.AppImage |
-linux-arm64.AppImage |
Then, make it executable:
chmod +x DesktopPlus-*-linux-*.AppImageFinally, double-click the .AppImage file to run it.
Before opening a new issue, please check the Known Issues document for common issues and their workarounds.
Desktop Plus includes a CLI (desktop-plus-cli) for opening and cloning repositories from the terminal. See the CLI documentation for usage details and instructions on creating a shorter alias.
corepack enable # Install yarn if needed
yarn # Install dependencies
yarn build:dev # Initial build
yarn start # Start the app for development and watch for changes-
It's normal for the app to take a while to start up, especially the first time.
-
While starting up, this error is normal:
UnhandledPromiseRejectionWarning: Error: Invalid header: Does not start with Cr24 -
You don't need to restart the app to apply changes. Just reload the window (
Ctrl + Alt + R/Cmd + Alt + R). -
Changes to the code inside
main-processdo require a full rebuild. Stop the app and runyarn build:devagain. -
Read this document for more information on how to set up your development environment.
The first time you open the project, install the dependencies by running:
corepack enable
yarnThen, you can simply build and run the app by pressing F5.
Breakpoints should be set in the developer tools, not the VSCode editor.
I recommend running the tests in a Docker container for reproducibility and to avoid conflicts with your git configuration.
After installing the dependencies with yarn, make sure you have Docker installed and run:
yarn test:dockerFirst, because shiftkey's fork is currently unmaintained (the last commit was in February 2025), so all Linux users are no longer getting the latest features and fixes from the official GitHub Desktop repository.
Secondly, I think the official GitHub Desktop app is very slow in terms of updates and lacks some advanced features that I'd like. This fork has low code quality requirements compared to the official repo, so I (and hopefully you as well) can add features and improvements quickly.
This fork also focuses on integrating nicely with Bitbucket, since I use it for work and haven't found a good Linux GUI client for it.
Keep in mind that this version is not endorsed by GitHub, and it's aimed at power users with technical knowledge. If you're looking for a polished and stable product, I recommend using the official GitHub Desktop app instead.
Application icon adapted from git-branch-plus by Lucide, ISC license.